Fleeting Bliss
by MiniStar
Summary: Ella's left her old life and is adjusting to life in the castle, which isn't very difficult when you compare it to the past. But then the last person you'd expect to want to talk to Ella (you know who I mean) showes up saying the last thing you'd expect h


Hattie burst into tears and ran up to her room. Mum Olga followed hastily. Olive had fallen asleep on the couch from when she'd sat down a minute or so ago; I hadn't been paying attention. "I'll go get your things, lady," Mandy said. "What do you need?" "Just my dolls, my book, and my necklace, I think." "I'll go get those then," she said, starting up the stairs. "I want to get mother's necklace myself," I said, running up the stairs to Hattie's room, taking them three at a time. "But Charmont was mine! He even called me by my first name -" "He calls everyone by their first name," I interrupted, feeling a twinge of pity but not much. Mum Olga looked up from the foot of Hattie's bed where she'd been sitting, gazing at her red-faced daughter and petting her back gently. "Why Ella," she said courteously. She chose now to be courteous to me. "We were just talking about how sad we'd all be when you were gone. Is there anything we can get you?" "My necklace," I said in a strangled voice, trying not to scream. Hattie lifted one eye from her pillow. "W-what necklace?" "My mother's necklace, the single treasure I had left from my mother after she died, a treasure that held most of all our wonderful memories, that you stole from me not soon after it had been mine," I said coldly, glaring furiously at Hattie for stealing from my mother. She got up slowly, went over to her jewelry box, and took it out. I snatched it from her hand the instant I saw it, putting it on and glancing in the mirror. It fit me perfectly; moreso than it ever had fit Hattie. I left the room to the overwhelming sound of Hattie wailing, the way I had at mother's funeral. I could find no pity, considering she was crying at a loss of a slave to boss around and I had cried at the loss of my only friend at the time. I went downstairs, to find that half the soldiers were asleep, leaning on their sword ends, and the others were dozing off slowly. "Perhaps we should stay here for the night and go to the castle tomorrow," Mandy said. I supposed it was rather late, and I had always wondered what it'd be like here if I weren't a slave. Even Char looked slightly drowsy. "Perhaps we should," I said. "I'll have a carriage sent over to take you to the castle tomorrow," Char said, and with that they left. Mandy went straight to sleep, but I couldn't. I felt more awake than I think I ever had, so I got up to do what I could never ordinarily do. I made my way to Hattie's room, looking around. Mum Olga had fallen onto the floor in sleep, and Hattie had fallen asleep as well, and was talking. "Yes of course, Charmont, I'd love to be your bride. My many other suitors would be disappointed, but they're not rich. Oh of course I forgive you for ever talking to that wench, but she's such a witch she probably poisoned your mind somehow." Even in her dreams she tried to be persuasive. Part of me wanted to disguise my voice as Char's and argue with her, but then I suppose all of us are entitled to dream. Even if the dream is a lie. I found a gold KJ near the front door and suspected Char had dropped it. He wouldn't need it, certainly, and neither would I . Hattie and Mum Olga didn't deserve it in the least, so I decided to give it to Olive. She was the only person that needed it that I could think of that I didn't hate with a passion. She was still asleep on the couch. I placed the coin in her hand, closing her hand over it with a note:  
  
DON'T TELL HATTIE OR MUM OLGA!!! Consider this a gift from princess Ella for not being as horrid annoying as the rest of your family.  
  
I went out into the garden where Char and I had first danced and where I had found the glass slippers. "The slippers!" I rushed up to my room and found them. I had almost left them here. They were under my dress that I had hastily discarded when I changed into my rags. The entire outfit was still clean, come to think of it, so I changed into that. When I put the shoes on I rubbed a bit of dirt off the heel; they'd been slightly dirty after I ran home. Then I straightened up and looked at myself in the mirror. The pearls pulled the whole look together. The rest of the night I went back out to that spot in the garden and waltzed with an invisible Char until the sun rose, when I went inside to take a hot bath. Hattie always took a hot bath in the morning and I had always wanted to. I used bubble bath and rubbed oils into my head that Hattie had forbidden me to touch. When she came in I was rubbing rose oil into my hair and singing, sunk in the hot water, my ears completely submerged so that every note echoed melodically. "Get out, Ella, and brush out my hair," she said. I suppose she'd convinced herself that last night had not really happened. "I don't have to listen to you anymore. And besides that, is that any way to speak to your princess?" I asked airily. She looked at me and her eyes shot to my necklace. I hadn't taken it off and didn't soon intend to. "Charmont never really loved you. He loved me. He just didn't want you to be heartbroken." "If he loved you he would have asked you to call him Char. And if he were worried about admirers being heartbroken he wouldn't have even gone to the ball. " It sounded cruel, but not nearly as cruel as she'd been to me. And it wasn't as though I was commanding her around.  
  
At breakfast Mandy served me fresh, delicious strawberries cut into quarters mixed with fresh whipped cream and dusted with sugar (a fish fork was provided since I like to eat the strawberry quarters individually) and four strips of prime bacon, juicy yet crispy, just the way I like them, and fresh pressed apple cider. All favorites of mine that I hadn't had in such a long time. Olive hardly ate her food; she kept looking down at something in her hands that she kept under the table, glancing at me with a look of utmost gratitude, and snapping back to the thing in her hand when I looked back at her. Hattie noticed. "Olive, what do you keep looking at? You're acting very strange." "Huh? Oh, nothing," she said, clutching the unseen coin to her chest. "Yes, you do, let me see it." "No!" "Olive what've you got?!" "Leave her alone!" I heard myself stay. "Stay out of this, Ella" "If Olive wanted to show you she would, but she doesn't want to and by order of your future Queen I won't have her forced into anything!" I commanded firmly. Hattie glared at me furiously, Olive looked like she could kiss me, and Mum Olga was glancing obliviously between the three of us. As for me I returned to my strawberries and cream. And Olive finally started eating normally. I finished with breakfast, complemented Mandy on her excellent cooking, and went out into the garden to sing and smell the flowers. "I'm going to move to the ca-stle, I'm going away from Ha-ttie, I'm living with Char for the rest of my life, I am free, free, free-ee," I sang as I twirled lightly. "Um, Ella?" said a voice behind me. I turned. "Hello, Olive, how is your day?" "Fine, um. well. thank you fir the KJ and from keeping Hattie from taking it." she said nervously. "Well, Hattie and Mum Olga have never really liked me and I don't need it, so I gave it to you. And it annoys me to see Hattie bossing people around." She beamed and left. I smiled. With her mother and her sister being wenches I hoped she wouldn't turn out the same. I went inside. I went to the basket with my things in it (next to the front door), took out my book, and looked to see if any massages were new. There was a diary entry from Hattie.  
  
Dear Diary,  
  
I wish I could kill Ella! Last night she officially became Charmont's fiancé and stole the pearls back and lost her obedience. This morning she took my bath, leaving no hot water and using up so much of my oils, blabbing about Charmont. Greedy wench! And then at breakfast she stopped me from finding what Olive stole from my room, although I don't know what she stole quite yet. But I'll have Charmont for my husband and Ella for my slave eternally or die trying! Turns out she was that wench in the mask also.  
  
I laughed to no end! Around lunchtime I was up in my room, when a knock was heard at the front door. I cracked my door open to see Hattie greeting Char. "Ella doesn't seem to be well. She hasn't woken up yet. A truly devoted wife would be here to greet you any time she sees you. You can do much better than a scullery maid -" "She wouldn't be a maid if you and your family hadn't forced her into it and considering the abuse she's been suffering at your hands I doubt she's had a descent sleep in months. I myself only woke up not too long ago if I'd been forced into serving people and waking up at six am -" "Five," I corrected from my open door. They both looked at me. "And Hattie I haven't been sleeping in I didn't even sleep last night I was too excited. Remember this morning I was taking a hot bath at around six thirty." "Ella! There you are! Shall we go?" "Please. Ever since I've been here I've dreamt of the day I could leave, just let me get Mandy." "Already here, lady," she said from the door of the kitchen holding a small carpetbag. "Goodbye Ella!" Olive yelled from her room. Hattie said nothing, just glared at me furiously, yet wistfully as if she were hoping looks could kill. Mum Olga, I think, didn't notice. "Let's go then, shall we?" said Char from the doorway, holding open the door. Mandy walked out first, then I walked to the doorway, paused, and turned. I curtsied magnificently, turning round from the tip of my toe when I rose and left. Hattie screamed. Char pretended not to notice. I felt wonderful. In the carriage Char sat on one of the two benches with his mother and father, Mandy and I on the other. I explained to them everything from my mother's funeral to today. My voice faltered in some points of the story, but if I could survive Hattie I could endure this. King Jerrold and Queen Daria welcomed me graciously into the royal family. "I always liked your mother. We were very good friends, even before I was queen," the Queen said. I was kind of nervous around them still, but they were soon to be my parents-in-law. Once we reached the castle things became very complicated. First I was rushed up to some room where they measured me for some new clothes. Near dinner it was announced that I would be wed to Char and a ball was scheduled for celebration after dinner. Mandy had brought some of mother's dresses and I wore one of those with a princess' crown, my mother's pearls, a pearl bracelet, pearl earrings, and my glass slippers. Out on the dance floor I was never seen unaccompanied by Char, and vice versa. We'd been apart far to long to lose sight of each other. My stepfamily came, and so did Arieda. Olive had sent a letter to her and I supplied her with a dress. I explained about my curse and we talked for what seemed like a minute although Char said it had been more like thirty until a kind looking duke asked her to dance by name and, blushing furiously, she left with a curtsy. When I turned Hattie was trying to persuade Char into dancing with her. "It is a royal ball, you're royal, and at balls the point is to dance, so you should be dancing." "Lady Hattie, beg pardon, but the past four days you've tried to contain me and I reluctantly obliged considering my father would be annoyed if I refused anyone. But, and I beg pardon for my rudeness, I wouldn't dance with you had I a choice then and I have a choice now and besides that you bark orders any chance you get. If you don't mind there are plenty of rich nobles here find one of them to pester." He turned, took my arm, and walked annoyedly away. "Your step sister needs to learn to take a hint," he muttered. Hattie heard. We waltzed into the garden, making up lost time. It was wonderful, and the garden was completely deserted. The scent of roses mingled with the various other fragrances. Crickets could be heard, chirping soothingly. Eventually we came to a bench, we both sat down. Leaning against his chest with his arms wrapped tight around me I felt more relaxed than I think I ever had. The full moon reflected off my jewelry, his crown, and both of our eyes, wet with happiness. I drifted slowly off to sleep.  
  
Hattie, however, was having a horrible time. It was three days after Charmont had explained in detail why she annoyed him and she hadn't eaten since. Her eyes were almost red from crying so much. Her mother knocked on the door of her room. "I'm not hungry." "You really should eat something, but that's not what I've come to talk to you about." She raised her head slightly off her pillow, turning to face her mother. She could tell her mother had an idea. She had a hint of a smirk and an evil glint flashed in her eye as she walked over to the bed. "Now Hattie listen, I've hatched a plan." She bent low over the girl's ear and whispered in it as Hattie cracked her only smile in days, not even noticing the pain in the muscle that causes a smirk.  
  
About a week later Ella was walking down to the kitchens to help make breakfast when she saw something that surprised her. Hattie and Mum Olga were sitting in the waiting room talking to a servant, who ran over to Ella with a message. "Princess Ella, a young lady - Lady Hattie - wishes to be a servant in this castle and be one of your Ladies in Waiting. Do you consent?" 


End file.
